Tag Archives: la news

Coming Soon to Your Neighborhood: Granny Flats, Converted Garages, Houses Turned into Tenements

Posted on November 16, 2009 by

This may be the most desperate and despicable act yet by City Hall in its long war to eradicate the middle class from Los Angeles. They call it a proposed Accessory Dwelling Unit ordinance. That’s a phrase intended to obscure … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Community Activists, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 37 Comments

Freeman Report: Cooking (the books) with Hot Air

Posted on November 9, 2009 by

Back on Aug. 11, David Zahniser in the LATimes reported that the DWP was trying to hire former Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez as a lobbyist in Sacramento because officials were worried AB 32 — the 2006 bill he wrote — … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Long Lines for City Hall’s Sweet ERIP Deal . . .

Posted on November 9, 2009 by

But Who Will Staff Libraries and Parks and Drive the Garbage Trucks ERIP Season has finally arrived and more than 1,600 city workers (ERIP List.pdf) lined up on the first two days to take advantage of City Hall’s generous offer … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , | 17 Comments

Why Is Everybody Always Picking on the Mayor?

Posted on November 5, 2009 by

His policies may be bankrupting the city, driving away the middle class, enriching special interests and leaving us all with nothing but poverty-level “living wage” jobs, but this is one time I’m on the mayor’s side. The LA Weekly’s Patrick … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall | Tagged , , , , | 22 Comments

The Campaign to Reform the DWP

Posted on November 3, 2009 by

EDITOR’S NOTE: D-DAY FOR DWP: At 9:30 a.m. Saturday Nov. 21, DWP officials will hold a budget discussion for the community at its downtown headquarters. If you want to stop massive rate increases, end DWP’s role as City Hall’s cash … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Activists, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , | 14 Comments

DWP Blackmail: Brian D’Arcy’s Monetary Terrorism

Posted on October 31, 2009 by

“They’ve been having a Mardi Gras (in City Hall) over the past three years.” — DWP union boss Brian D’Arcy on why IBEW members deserve a 3.25 % cash payment and raises up to 4 p% for the next few … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Community Activists, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 47 Comments

DWP Calling: Your Money or Your Life (Or Why We Need to Know Where Our Money Goes)

Posted on October 27, 2009 by

Editor’s Note: The City Council, after a lengthy debate about Google vs. Microsoft email products, unanimously approved both the water and power bond plans of DWP without debate, setting the stage for further rate increases. Google email won unanimous approval … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Community Activists, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , | 27 Comments

Give ‘em Hell, Nuch — We Need a Bully at City Hall

Posted on October 26, 2009 by

City Attorney Carmen “Nuch” Trutanich took a beating last week in the press and at City Council for trying to solve the billboard mess created by City Hall over seven years. It’s a good thing he’s a tough guy from … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Community Activists, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Who’s Killing Your Neighborhood? It’s Not a Mystery Anymore

Posted on October 23, 2009 by

For the last 18 months I tracked how the city dealt with the illegal conversion of a single-family home into a three-apartment tenement and wrote it as a 16-part mystery called “Whodunit: Who’s Killing My Neighborhood?” Now, I learn from … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Community Activists, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

City Hall Blackmail: Fewer Cops at Lower Pay, More DWP Workers at Higher Pay

Posted on October 19, 2009 by

FACT: It is City Hall’s official policy to transfer civilian employees to the DWP to avoid layoffs. FACT: The Mayor and City Council have agreed to halt police hiring — temporarily they say — as soon as Tuesday. FACT: The … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 16 Comments